Queen Anne

The Queen Anne style is synonymous with English baroque – it is a pleasing, elegant form of architecture that was epitomised under its namesake’s reign from 1702 to 1714. But the foundations of its development came from earlier in the 17th century, with the advent of the first architects in a modern sense, and later developing as a result of the creation of the great houses that are still dotted across the English countryside.

Despite a few false starts, the use of classical ornament and symmetry would continue through the 17th century, and it was these developments that led to the elegant, Italianate and ornate characteristics we see in Queen Anne houses today. It was a style that oversaw the end of vernacular traditions in building, and would ring in the refinement of classical designs under the early Georgians. But to this day, for many the idea of living in a Queen Anne house – with its fine brickwork, quoin details marking the corners, and an elaborate pedimented doorcase cloaked in wisteria – is the ultimate dream.

DESIGN EVOLUTION

What ‘baroque’ means in stylistic terms can be confusing for the uninitiated, but once you delve a little into the background and context, the